


Mall Elf

by mikkimouse



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Christmas, Fluff, M/M, Mall Elf Keith, Shopping Malls
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-01
Updated: 2018-01-01
Packaged: 2019-02-26 08:02:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13231482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikkimouse/pseuds/mikkimouse
Summary: "Have a candy cane, Merry Christmas," Keith said, making an effort to inject as much jolliness into his voice as he could—or at least making an effort not to sound like he was seriously contemplating throwing himself into the mall fountain.He'd made it maybe a quarter of the way up his part of the line when he held out a candy cane and looked up into the clear grey eyes of the most beautiful man he'd ever seen.Keith's heart stuttered to a stop, and he stood there like an idiot, holding out a candy cane. "Uh. Hi. Candy cane?"(Keith is working as a mall elf for the holidays. Shiro works at a suit store in the mall. Pining ensues.)





	Mall Elf

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [yiff-kashit](https://yiff-kashit.tumblr.com/) for the Sheith Secret Santa! I hope you've had a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year, and I hope you enjoy this fluffy fic. :-D
> 
> Thank you to [bleep0bleep](http://bleep0bleep.tumblr.com/) and [domesticated-chaos](http://domesticated-chaos.tumblr.com/) for the beta read! (* _The Wind Beneath My Wings_ plays in the distance*)

Keith had never so passionately regretted all his life choices as much as he had this week, but wearing green tights and jingle bells really threw things into stark perspective. 

How, _how_ was "mall elf" the only job he'd been able to find? 

Pidge elbowed him in the side and grinned. "Come on, Keith. We're supposed to be jolly, remember?" 

"Santa's supposed to be jolly," Keith muttered, with a glance over his shoulder at Coran, who was happily letting an awestruck four-year-old play with his gigantic fake white beard. "We're supposed to take pictures and keep kids from getting fussy in line."

Pidge poked him. "We're at least supposed to be happy about it. Come on, smile, we've only got another three hours on shift." 

"You say that like it's a _good_ thing," Keith grumbled, but he forced a smile to his face. 

A nearby kid took one look at him and burst into tears, and the kid's mother gave him a vicious glare. 

Keith sighed. Yeah. This had been a _great_ decision, and he still had to live with it for another two and a half weeks. Not to mention, these elf shoes _pinched_. 

He scanned the line out of some faint hope that it had grown shorter in the past fifteen minutes, but of course it hadn't. If anything, it was longer now, packed with screaming kids and frazzled parents. 

Three hours was going to be an eternity. 

"Here." Pidge shoved a bucket of candy canes into his arms. "Go hand these out." 

Keith raised a skeptical eyebrow at the bucket. "Because what we need to give screaming, hyperactive kids is even _more_ sugar?" 

Pidge pointed. " _Go_. You take the back half of the line, I'll take the front." 

Keith stifled both a groan and a roll of his eyes, but he took the bucket to the back of the line and started handing out candy canes. "Have a candy cane, Merry Christmas," he said, making an effort to inject as much jolliness into his voice as he could—or at least making an effort not to sound like he was seriously contemplating throwing himself into the mall fountain. 

He'd made it maybe a quarter of the way up his part of the line when he held out a candy cane and looked up into the clear grey eyes of the most beautiful man he'd ever seen. 

Keith's heart stuttered to a stop, and he stood there like an idiot, holding out a candy cane. "Uh. Hi. Candy cane?" 

The man smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners, and took the candy cane. "Sure, thank you." 

The smile was _lethal_. Keith was starting to feel lightheaded. The guy had dark hair and an undercut and a scar across the bridge of his nose and he was wearing a perfectly tailored charcoal suit that practically made his eyes glow.

_Say something else!_ Keith's brain shouted at him, but the part of his brain that actually _contributed_ to making words happen was no longer online. Hot Suit Guy had broken it. 

"Can _I_ get a candy cane?" a new voice said. 

It startled Keith back into awareness, and he looked down at the girl with a brown ponytail standing next to Hot Suit Guy, holding her hand out. 

Crap. Hot Suit Guy had a kid. 

Keith pulled out another candy cane and handed it to her. "Uh, sure. Of course you can. What are you going to ask Santa for, little girl?" 

The girl took the candy cane and raised her eyebrows at him. It was very judgmental. "I'm _ten_." 

Hot Suit Guy covered his mouth and muffled a snicker.

Keith's face heated. Yeah. This was going great. "What do you want for Christmas, kid?" 

She unwrapped her candy cane and continued to side-eye him. "For my dad to get married." 

Keith choked on nothing and glanced at Hot Suit Guy. "Uh, really?" 

Hot Suit Guy's cheeks turned pink and he held up his hands. "She's not talking about me! Her dad's my boss. I'm just watching her."

"So you got stuck with babysitting duty?" Keith asked. 

Hot Suit Guy smiled sheepishly. "Well..." 

"Dad wanted me out of the store because there was an angry guy starting to swear a lot and Dad thinks I haven't heard those words yet," the girl said around a mouthful of candy cane. 

"Oh," Keith said, and considered when he'd expanded his own vocabulary in that direction. "But...you're _ten_." 

The girl lifted one shoulder in a shrug and took out her phone. "He's weird like that."

"So I offered to take her to see Santa," Hot Suit Guy said quickly. "It's a nice break from the Christmas rush. Plus, free candy canes." 

"Well," Keith gestured to the line, "that guy will probably be long gone by the time you two get through this. And, uh, if you want any more candy canes," he shook the bucket, "I've got a lot more where that came from." 

Hot Suit Guy's eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "That's, uh, good to know." 

Keith wanted to _kick_ himself. He was terrible at this. "Okay. Yeah. I've got to, uh. See the rest of the line. Later." 

He hurried back toward the front of the line, practically shoving candy canes at people and steadfastly refusing to look back for Hot Suit Guy.

He had discovered there was only one thing worse than wearing pinchy elf shoes and green tights for work, and that was completely embarrassing himself in front of the hottest guy he'd ever seen while wearing pinchy elf shoes and green tights.

Keith was _definitely_ throwing himself into the mall fountain.

***

The next day, Keith had mostly put his humiliation out of his mind and comforted himself with the knowledge that he would probably never see Hot Suit Guy again. It was a big mall and Keith was only here for four weeks , nearly half of which he'd already worked. 

On the one hand, it was sad, because Hot Suit Guy really _was_ the most beautiful man Keith had ever seen, and it would be nice to see him again. On the other hand, he was _extremely_ grateful, because that meant he would never have to deal with his embarrassment at the awkwardness of their only interaction. 

His gratitude lasted another 45 seconds, when he lifted his eyes from his burrito to see Hot Suit Guy just standing up from a booth two tables over. 

Hot Suit Guy's eyes roamed the food court and landed right on Keith. 

_Crap_. Keith was pretty sure it would be obvious if he hid under the table. He lifted his hand in an awkward wave instead. 

To his surprise, Hot Suit Guy smiled at him and walked over. "I didn't know elves got burritos for lunch." 

"They do when their non-elf friends work at the burrito place," Keith said. "So you're not on babysitting duty today?" 

Hot Suit Guy chuckled. "Nah, not today. I'm actually doing what I'm paid for." 

"Which is?" Keith asked. 

Hot Suit Guy plucked at his lapel. "Selling suits." 

"Oh." That seemed kind of obvious, now that Keith was thinking about it. "So that's why the, uh..." 

"The suit, yeah," Hot Suit Guy said. "Have to show off the merchandise, you know?" 

Keith didn't really know, but it seemed logical. "Yeah. Well, you make it look good." 

Oh God, _why_ did he say that? 

Hot Suit Guy rubbed the back of his neck and blushed. "Ha, thanks. I've got to get back to work; my lunch break's nearly over. I'll see you around, uh...?" 

It took Keith a moment to realize that Hot Suit Guy wanted his _name._ "Keith! I'm Keith."

"Keith." Hot Suit Guy smiled. "I'm Shiro." 

"Nice to meet you, Shiro," Keith said. "I'll, uh, see you around?" 

"Yeah." Shiro waved at him and headed off. "See you." 

Keith did his best to watch him go without _looking_ like he was watching him go. Hot Suit Guy was Shiro. Shiro. That was a nice name. And he was really beautiful when he blushed. 

"I'll wingman for you." 

Keith nearly jumped out of his seat. Lance had slid into the seat across from him with a tray of nachos and was _grinning_ at Keith. It was unnerving. 

"You'll what for me?" Keith asked. 

" _Wingman_ , Keith!" Lance slapped his arm. "You know, I talk about how awesome you are and how Suit Guy—" 

"Shiro," Keith put in.

"—Yeah, okay, whatever, my point is, you're just a little awkward with the flirting. Not bad!" Lance said quickly. "But I can help." 

"No," Keith said flatly. 

"Dude! Come on, I am _good_ at this!" Lance leaned forward and waggled his eyebrows. "You've seen me with the _ladies_." 

"Yes, I have borne witness to all sixteen rejections you've collected while attempting to flirt with the girls in the chocolate shop," Keith deadpanned. 

Lance jabbed a loaded chip in his direction. "Hey, some people just don't know how to appreciate Loverboy Lance. Seriously, I'll wingman for you. It'll be great." 

Keith would sooner swallow shards of glass. "If you try it, I swear I will ruin _any_ chance you have with Allura."

Lance choked on his chip. "That's _low_ , man. I thought we were friends." 

Keith picked up his burrito. "And as long as you keep your nose out of my love life, we'll stay friends." 

"Oh, shut your burrito-hole," Lance muttered.

***

The next day, Keith strategically took his lunch break half an hour earlier than usual in the hopes of catching Shiro in the food court. He was pretty sure Pidge and Allura wanted to murder him for it, but he'd volunteered to run all the post-work errands they hated—like getting more candy canes—and that seemed to have mollified them. At least, it had mollified Pidge. Allura had still been glaring daggers at him when he'd left. 

He was only half paying attention as he ordered, too busy scanning the food court to see if Shiro was already here. Fortunately, Hunk was the one taking his order, not Lance, so he still ended up with something he'd enjoy eating. Hunk would mess with you in other ways, but he took food _very_ seriously.

Keith took his tray and took one last look around the food court. He was going to be _really_ irritated if he'd taken off early and it turned out Shiro wasn't here. 

But no. Keith spotted him near the other side of the food court, half-hidden behind a giant fake plant and reading a book while he ate lunch. 

Keith took a deep breath and walked over to him. "Uh. Hi, Shiro." 

Shiro looked up from his book, and his face split into a wide grin. "Keith! Hey!" 

"I saw you eating lunch and thought I would say hi," Keith said, which felt painfully, awkwardly obvious in retrospect. "So. Hi." 

Shiro gestured to the seat beside him. "Do you want to join me?" 

"Sure!" Keith said, probably too quickly. "Uh. If I'm not interrupting your reading?" 

Shiro put the book aside. "It's okay. Go ahead, sit down." 

Keith sat down with his tray and hoped he didn't _look_ like his heart was about to beat out of his chest. He'd hoped he'd get to see Shiro in the food court; he hadn't actually thought all the way through what he'd do if he _had_. Really, the "hi" line was about the best he had. 

"So what are you reading?" Keith asked. "Anything good?" 

"Oh, yeah, it's called _Good Omens_." Shiro held it up. "It's a comedy about the apocalypse. Have you read it?" 

Keith blinked. "It's a comedy about the...apocalypse?" 

Shiro laughed. "I'll take that as a no. It's really great. Have you read any of the Discworld series?" 

Keith shook his head. "I'm more murder mysteries and science fiction, honestly."

"Ah," Shiro said. "Well, if you ever do decide to give fantasy a try, you should definitely look at the Discworld series. It's hilarious."

"Okay. Uh. Is _Good Omens_ part of that?"

Shiro laughed again. It was a really nice sound, and Keith was _pretty_ sure he wasn't laughing at him. "No, no. Sorry. I can see how that would've been confusing. No, the author of the Discworld series co-wrote _Good Omens_ , so if you like his style there, you'll probably enjoy it here, too. But, since you haven't read it, it's a moot point." 

"Huh," Keith said. "I'll have to check it out, then. Maybe after I'm finished with my stint at the North Pole." 

Shiro laughed out loud at that. "So what do elves do when it's not the Christmas season?" 

"I'm not sure about Pidge and Allura, but this one usually teaches martial arts," Keith said. 

Shiro's eyes widened. "Really?" 

Keith nodded. 

Shiro looked him over, this time like he was trying to ascertain whether Keith was telling the truth. 

"I know I'm short, but I'm good," Keith said. "Things went a little sideways at the gym I worked at, though, so I needed another job for the holidays." 

"A little sideways?" Shiro repeated. 

"Yeah..." Keith scratched the back of his head. "Probably best I don't get into that too much." 

Shiro sat back. "At this point, I'm kind of afraid to ask."

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you," Keith said, fighting to keep a straight face. 

Shiro rested his chin in his hand. "I can honestly say that's the first time I've been threatened by someone wearing an elf costume." 

Keith's cheeks heated. "Uh, I'm deadly with tinsel?" 

Shiro threw back his head and laughed, and it made Keith feel warm all over. 

Just then, a phone alarm went off, and Shiro dug his phone out of his suit. "That's me. My lunch break's over. I'll see you tomorrow?" 

Was it just Keith's imagination, or did Shiro sound hopeful about that? He decided to go with yes, he did. "Yeah, sure. See you tomorrow. Unless you bring your boss's kid to see Santa again." 

Shiro grinned. "Only if you promise me an extra candy cane." 

"I think I could swing that," Keith said.

***

It became a thing, eating lunch together. Shiro was usually halfway finished with his by the time Keith got to the table, but he never seemed in any hurry to leave. After their first real conversation, Keith started bringing a candy cane to every lunch, and Shiro always looked inordinately surprised and pleased when Keith gave it to him. 

They also talked, a lot, which was surprising in and of itself, but what surprised Keith more was that it was easy. He was awkward at best, even with his friends, but he was even worse when it was someone he was interested in. But Shiro...he never seemed to find Keith awkward. Or if he did, it didn't bother him.

And it also didn't seem to bother him that Keith was wearing a green elf costume every time they met.

"So are you going to get Hot Suit Guy a Christmas present?" Allura asked after he'd been meeting Shiro for lunch every day for a week and a half. 

"His name is Shiro," Keith corrected her. 

Allura rolled her eyes. "Shiro, then. You still didn't answer my question." 

"...no?" Keith said.

Pidge popped up from behind the camera. "You've been pining after him for two weeks. You should totally get him a Christmas present." She turned back to the kid on Coran's lap. "Say peppermint popsicles!" 

Keith refilled his bucket of candy canes and handed one out. "We barely know each other." 

"You spend an hour every day making heart-eyes at each other, I think getting him something that says 'I'd like to see what's under that suit' is the _least_ you could do," Pidge said. "Say candy corn!" 

"Candy corn's really more of a fall thing, don't you think?" Allura said. 

Pidge waved at the camera. "Hey, princess, if you want to take over the picture-taking, feel free." 

Keith handed out another candy cane and hoped they'd gotten distracted from his personal life by arguing about the correct candy names to call out while taking pictures. He wasn't _opposed_ to the idea of getting Shiro a gift, exactly, but they really hadn't known each other that long. Wasn't that weird? 

Not to mention, he didn't have the slightest idea of _what_ to get him. He knew Shiro had worked at the suit store for three years, knew that he loved reading and science and space, knew that he'd been in the military before he'd lost his arm, knew that he lived with his grandfather, who'd raised him. He knew that Shiro was the first to volunteer for babysitting duty when his boss's daughter and was almost unfailingly patient with everybody he met. Even Lance, the one time Keith had seen them interact. 

Okay, so maybe he _did_ know a lot about Shiro. Was that creepy? Keith really hoped not. 

"Seriously," Pidge said, and Keith nearly jumped out of his skin. "Get your boyfriend a Christmas gift."

Dammit, he'd really hoped she'd forgotten about that. "He's not my boyfriend." 

Allura and Pidge shared a look. "Are you _sure?_ " Allura asked. 

Keith jabbed a candy cane at them. "We haven't talked about it, so _yes,_ I'm pretty sure."

Pidge's eyes lit up. "But you _want_ to be?" 

Keith just glared. "I don't _have_ to talk about this with you, you know." 

"Then don't," Allura said. "But if you do want him to be your boyfriend, get him a Christmas gift." 

Pidge nodded. "She has a point." 

"Thanks," Keith said dryly. "I'll keep that in mind."

***

After work, Keith walked back toward the parking garage, but his mind hadn't let go of the Christmas present conversation. Now that Pidge and Allura weren't pestering him, he could privately admit he _did_ want to get Shiro something, not because it was Christmas or because he thought he had to, but because somehow in the two weeks that they'd known each other, Shiro had become important to him. It was the first time he'd felt like he'd clicked with anyone. Even his friendships had been borne out of proximity (Pidge and Allura) or dogged insistence in not leaving him alone (Lance and Hunk). But Shiro...Shiro was different. 

He walked by the bookstore and slowed. They were closing up for the evening, so he wasn't going to go in, but it gave him an idea. He knew Shiro loved to read—it was one of the hobbies they shared, even if they loved different genres—and that...that would probably be a good gift. 

Keith tapped his fingers on his thigh and started walking again. He had an idea. 

And for once, he was pretty sure it was a good one.

***

"Are you working Christmas Eve?" Keith asked Shiro the next time they had lunch. 

Shiro looked up from his plate of tacos. "Oh, definitely. We're open until five-thirty. How about you?" 

Keith nodded. "It's my last day of work. They close down the Santa's house at four-thirty." 

"Oh," Shiro said. "That's right. You'll be gone after the holidays." 

Was it his imagination, or did Shiro sound disappointed? "Well, I won't be around here wearing an elf suit, that's for sure." 

Shiro gave him a half-smile. "Back to looking for another job at a gym?" 

Keith nodded. "Wish me luck. But, uh...I asked about Christmas Eve because I have something to give you." 

Shiro's eyes widened. "You do?" 

Keith ducked his head. "Yeah, it's not anything, really. I wanted to make sure you would be here."

Shiro smiled at him, which made Keith's heart do stupid, stupid things. "I'll be here. And that's good, because I have something to give to you, too." 

Oh. It hadn't occurred to Keith that Shiro might get him something in return. "Oh. Cool! I, uh, guess we'll just exchange gifts on Christmas Eve, then?" 

"Sounds like a plan," Shiro said.

***

Christmas Eve arrived way too quickly for Keith's tastes. He'd been on pins and needles ever since he'd gotten his gift for Shiro, but it still seemed like he just _blinked_ and suddenly it was his last day of work. 

He'd thought the line wouldn't be that long, considering that it was Christmas Eve and Santa was supposed to have somewhere else to be, but the number of kids waiting was _ridiculous_. Keith hadn't even seen it this long on Saturday afternoons, which was usually when they had the most kids all month. 

"What are they all _doing_ here?" he asked. 

Pidge poked him. "Getting their last-minute gift requests into Santa, what does it look like?" 

Keith stared at her. "It's Christmas. Eve." 

A little girl in the line looked up at him, her lip wobbling. "Does that mean it's too late?" 

"No!" Allura said quickly, with a sharp glare at Keith. "Santa's magic. It's never too late." 

The girl didn't look convinced, and Allura elbowed Keith in the side. 

"Definitely not too late," Keith said. "That's not what I meant." 

The girl narrowed her eyes at him. "What _did_ you mean, then?" 

"Just that, uh..." Keith searched for an explanation, but he couldn't think of one.

"He's just very concerned about whether Santa will get started on time," Allura said. "As you know, he has to get around the whole world, and even with his reindeer going as fast as they can, it takes a long time. But don't you worry." She winked. "We'll make sure he sees all of you before he has to leave." 

The girl practically beamed at Allura. "Thank you, Miss Elf!" 

Allura smiled at the girl and shoved Keith toward the camera. "Take over for Pidge. And keep your Santa-related thoughts to yourself, hm?" 

Keith resisted the urge to stick his tongue out at her—he _could_ be mature—and poked Pidge out from behind the camera. He wasn't that great at taking pictures, but there was a lower chance that he'd accidentally ruin Christmas for some kid this way.

Even so, being stuck behind the camera made him antsy, and he kept checking his phone for the time. He was supposed to meet Shiro for lunch, but the way things were going, it was doubtful that was going to happen. 

After the fifth or sixth time he'd checked his phone, Allura swatted his shoulder and told him to pay attention to the kids, and gave him a look that told him she'd probably dismember him and use the parts as garland if he didn't. 

"You're the one who told me to get him a Christmas gift," Keith said petulantly. 

Allura rolled her eyes. "If I'd known how much it would distract you from _your job_ , I would never have suggested it."

Keith grumbled and turned back to the kid sitting in Santa's lap. "Say 'mint chocolate chips!'"

By the time the last kid had come through for a picture and a candy cane, Keith had a headache building behind his eyes, he was starving, his face hurt from his fake smile, and he was minutes away from setting his elf shoes on fire. But he was finally done, he never had to wear this stupid costume again, and he could go see Shiro. 

He pulled his phone out and checked the time. 

5:55 pm." _Shit!_ " 

Allura swatted his shoulder. "Keith! There are children around!" 

He was going to be late. He was going to miss Shiro and wouldn't get to give him his gift and they would _never see each other again_. "We were supposed to be done an hour and a half ago! I'm late!" 

Pidge shoved his gift bag into his hands. "Then run! Go get your man!"

Keith grabbed the gift and launched himself over the rope that cordoned off the Santa area from the rest of the mall, and bolted down the hall toward the suit store. He couldn't be late. He couldn't lose this opportunity. He couldn't—

" _Keith!_ " 

He skidded to a stop and looked around for who'd shouted his name, and spotted Shiro sitting on a bench in the center of the concourse. 

For a moment, Keith just stood there in shock, because he'd been so convinced that he _wouldn't_ get to see Shiro again that he wasn't quite sure what to do with the fact that Shiro was right there. 

He finally unstuck his brain long enough to say, "Sorry I'm late." 

Shiro gave him a wide smile and patted the bench beside him. "That's okay. I saw the line while I was grabbing lunch, and to be honest, we've been just as busy all day. We just finished closing ten minutes ago." 

Keith sagged in relief and sat on the bench next to Shiro. "Yeah, I bet Christmas Eve was a mess for you guys, huh?" 

Shiro groaned and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You have no idea." 

Keith held out his present, heart pounding. "Maybe this will make it a little better?" 

Shiro took the bag with a grin and pulled out the tissue paper. "It almost definitely will." 

Keith had to sit on his hands to keep from fidgeting as he watched Shiro set aside the tissue paper and pull out the book inside. 

" _The Martian_?" Shiro said, with no inflection whatsoever to give Keith an idea of whether he liked the gift or not.

Keith's heart was going to find a way to leap out of his body at this rate. "Yeah. It's one of my favorites, and I thought you might like it. And, uh, you should check the back of the cover." 

Shiro flipped it open, looked to see what Keith had written, and burst out laughing. 

Keith's stomach sank like a stone. He'd misjudged. He'd misjudged a _lot_ , but he'd never expected Shiro to laugh at him. 

"Sorry," he mumbled, and got up to leave. Well, flee, really. Run away and burn his stupid elf costume and never set foot in this mall again. 

Shiro lunged up and grabbed his wrist. "No, no, Keith, wait! Sorry, I'm sorry, that's not why—" He snagged a wrapped present off the bench and pressed it into Keith's hands. "Here. Open it. Please." 

Keith debated throwing the present down and running anyway, but Shiro sounded earnest. He worked his fingers under the wrapping paper and ripped it off and did not look back up at Shiro. 

It was a copy of _Good Omens_. 

"Look at the title page," Shiro said. 

Keith did. There, at the top of the page, was a phone number and the name _Takashi Shirogane_ , and a little note: 

_Call me if you want to read it together. Or, you know, just talk about it? Or talk about anything.  
Merry Christmas, Keith.  
_  
Shiro hadn't been laughing because he didn't like the gift. He'd been laughing because they'd gotten each other books and then written the _same damn thing_ in them. 

"Oh," Keith said. 

"Yeah, oh," Shiro said.

Keith finally looked back up at him, and Shiro was grinning so brightly it made his heart flip. "So the moral of this story is that we're both complete dorks." 

Shiro shrugged. "I'm kind of okay with that." 

"Yeah." Keith rubbed his thumbs over the cover of the book. "I'm okay with that, too." 

"So, uh, I know we're probably both busy tomorrow and also literally everywhere is closed," Shiro said, "but would you want to go get coffee sometime this week?" 

"I...yeah." Keith nodded. "Yeah, I'd really love to. And...maybe we can talk _Good Omens_?" 

"Or _The Martian_ ," Shiro said with a smile. 

Keith was smiling back so hard his face hurt, and he knew he must've looked like a complete idiot, but he couldn't bring himself to care. "Yeah. That sounds good, too." 

"I have to head out," Shiro said, "but, uh, I'll call you?" 

Keith was clutching his book so hard he was probably leaving nail marks in the cover. "Yeah. You've got my number." 

Shiro smiled. "Merry Christmas, Keith." 

Before he could lose his nerve, Keith leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. "Merry Christmas, Shiro. And thanks for the book." 

Shiro's eyes widened and his smile turned into something softer and a little bit dazed. "I...yeah. You, too." 

Keith hugged his book to his chest and headed back toward the parking garage where he was parked. "See you later, Shiro!" 

"Hey, Keith!" 

Keith turned back, where Shiro was still standing in the middle of the concourse. "Yeah?" 

"Will you be wearing the elf costume for our date?" 

Keith laughed, both at the idea and the bubbly feeling he got because Shiro had called it a date. "Not a chance!" 

"But how will I recognize you?" Shiro said, with a shit-eating grin Keith could see from twenty yards away. 

Keith saluted him with the book. "Don't worry. I'll find you." 

(And he did.)

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [Tumblr](https://mad-madam-m.tumblr.com/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/mad_madam_m)!


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